According to one Ontario judge, the requirement that parties file paper copies of materials in the Superior Court of Justice is an “unnecessary” expense that impedes access to justice. While he allowed recovery of more than $16,000 in disbursements for photocopying, printing and binding motion materials inDBDC Spadina Ltd. v. Walton,[2014] O.J. No. 4009, Justice Brown criticized the Ontario Court for its “failure to move into the digital age”. While the parties had “most helpfully” provided electronic copies of all materials filed, they were of course still required under our Rules to file paper copies. Those paper expenses were therefore recoverable. However, Justice Brown said that in order to show a commitment to access to justice, the province must remove the requirement that litigants continue to deal with the Court through “the dated and expensive medium of paper”.

​Our justice system is indeed wedded to paper. Whether that will change as a result of decisions such as this one, remains to be seen.